The Husks' screams erupted simultaneously, echoing like iron clashing deep inside a cavern. They surged from behind the trees, muddy bodies moving in jerky staccato, as if each joint was controlled by invisible strings pulled with force. The swamp quivered under their steps.
Mira screamed. Ren only lowered his body slightly, assuming a defensive stance like someone who had faced this situation before.
"To the left," he said flatly.
The dagger in his hand was no weapon against these creatures—but his movements were decisive. A faint dark energy ran along his shadow, subtle cracks pulsing like a second heartbeat. His Hidden Marks responded to the threat, though Ren himself had yet to fully understand or control their function.
The first Husk lunged. Ren leaned to the side, grabbed Mira by the collar, and pulled her back. The Husk's rough claws missed the ground, splashing mud in swirling clouds like thick smoke.
"Don't stop," Ren said, pushing Mira forward. "They move by vibration, not sight."
Mira stumbled but forced her legs to move.
"R-Ren, they… know you! How—"
"Quiet."
No anger in his voice. Only calculation.
Two more Husks leapt from the sides. Ren planted his foot, pivoted, and kicked a massive root, sending a hard vibration through the ground. The root responded—writhing like a giant beast, blocking the Husks' path instantly. They growled in frustration, losing footing as the roots pressed against them.
Ren pulled Mira further away.
"We can't fight them in open formation," he said. "We take the dry root path. They're slower there."
"A-are you sure?" Mira gasped.
"Yes."
Ren never offered an answer that was not fact.
They arrived between two colossal roots towering like broken gates. Within, a dim green light enveloped a twisting path, ancient and dense, older than memory itself.
"Go," Ren ordered.
Mira crawled first, gasping. Ren followed, but before he could step in, a Husk leapt at him from the mist.
Ren ducked, slicing the air with his dagger—swift, but not enough to pierce Husk flesh. It was never his intent. A faint glow pulsed from his Hidden Marks beneath his feet.
His shadow expanded.
As if struck by an unseen force, the Husk was flung sideways, hitting a dead tree with a neck-breaking angle that defied reason. Its body fell, then immediately rose again, neck twisted, now staring at Ren upside down.
"EMPTY… VESSEL…"
The voice did not come from its mouth. It emanated from the space around them.
Ren entered the root passage without another word.
---
Inside the root tunnel, the world felt quieter—but not peaceful. It was a pause before the fall. Ren sensed something moving beneath the ground: subtle, repetitive tremors, not Husk footsteps.
"This is not ordinary swamp," he muttered.
Mira stayed close.
"A-Are we safe?"
"No."
One word. Enough to make Mira shiver again.
"Why not?" she whispered.
Ren paused. Listening. Analyzing. The tremor… it did not come from something chasing them. But from something waiting.
"There's another creature," Ren said. "Bigger. Slower. And it doesn't pursue us… because it knows our exit."
Mira gripped the root beside her, dirt falling from the wood.
"How do you know?"
"Echo," Ren said softly.
"E-Echo… what is that?"
Ren did not answer immediately. He pressed his palm to the largest root. Vibrations from deep within flowed into his hand like electricity.
"They leave residual vibrations," he explained. "Like echoes that never vanish. And this place is full of them."
Mira stared at him as if he were no longer human.
"Do all Divers sense that?"
"I'm not a Diver."
"Then—"
"I'm just… accustomed."
Ren raised his hand, marking the twisting path to the right.
"Here."
---
The cracking sound appeared again.
Not loud.
Not close.
But unmistakable—Husks were following them through the root corridor from afar. They didn't need eyes; they followed pressure, shifts in air, even Mira's fear.
"Ren… they're getting closer…"
"I know."
Ren ran. Mira followed.
The tunnel curved downward, roots giving way to solid earth, then into a hollow chamber beneath the swamp. Above, branches and roots formed a dark ceiling that pulsed slowly, inhaling the damp air.
Ren stopped suddenly.
Mira almost collided with him.
"W-why stop?!"
Ren stared at the ground ahead. A wide circle—its surface unnervingly smooth, unlike the rippling swamp. Too smooth.
"Don't step on it," he said.
"Why?"
"Because it's not ground."
Mira swallowed hard.
"Then… what is it?"
Ren gave her a fleeting glance.
"…skin."
The skin of something dormant beneath the mud.
Before Mira could react, a massive tremor surged from below. The swamp exhaled a long, foul breath, as if releasing centuries of held air.
Mira recoiled in panic.
"S-Sick… Ren…"
Ren pointed upward.
"Climb that root. Quickly."
He pushed Mira firmly. She scrambled up like a giant rib. Ren followed—but the ground beneath began to swell in one spot, as if something was forcing its way up from below.
Mira's eyes widened in horror.
"That's what's been chasing us from the start?!"
"No," Ren said. It was waiting.
The ground broke apart.
A massive form crawled out. Human-like, yet faceless. Only a flat void where features should have been, as if its entire identity had been erased.
Its body was bloated, as if soaked in water for too long, lower half merged with roots.
The creature opened its "mouth"—a vertical crack splitting its face. From within came the whisper they had heard before:
"…you have returned…"
Mira held her breath.
Ren stared at it, expressionless.
"It's not speaking to you, Mira."
The creature lifted its body with slow, rigid movements—each bone seeming ready to break. Yet despite its size, it did not move randomly. It faced Ren, deliberate… acknowledging.
"Ren," Mira whispered, "why does every creature here… know you…?"
Ren did not answer.
Not because he refused.
But because he did not know either.
One thing was certain:
All beings in The Siphon Mire—Husks, shadows, or ancient monsters—shared one recognition that even Ren could not comprehend.
They remembered him.
The creature approached, bowing its head, growling in a tone that made the roots tremble.
"EMPTY VESSEL… return to your place…"
And for the first time, Mira saw something on Ren's face.
Not fear.
But… cold acknowledgment.
As if a part of him knew this creature. And Ren hated it—because it was true.
---
Then, the earth trembled again—stronger.
A low rumble echoed, unlike anything they had felt.
From the deepest shadows of the swamp, something massive began to stir, far larger than the first faceless creature…
And it was coming for them.
Ren's pupils narrowed.
"Get ready, Mira," he whispered.
The Siphon Mire had just begun to speak… and this time, it would devour.